Organic Lawn Care, and more on Growing Less of It

First, thanks to Mid-Atlantic gardening guru Mike McGrath for his highly entertaining talk about “Getting Your Lawn Off Drugs” recently at Homestead Gardens.

Mike McGrath

My summary of his comments is right here, and it’s been vetted by Mike himself (and subsequently tweaked), so no chances have been taken, y’all!

Of course, that doesn’t prevent disagreement, because disagree is what experts and assorted proponents of “green” practices do, right?  So we heard from a couple of people who disagreed with Mike’s statement that Canadian peatmoss is okay to use.  One EPA representative in the DC region made the point that even if it were harvested “sustainably,” the very act of harvesting peatmoss releases greenhouses gasses.  He reminded me that the Sustainable Sites Initiative folks are all OVER this issue, and I’ve actually heard SSI leader Steve Windhager tell audiences to never, ever use the stuff.   Okay, got it.

Lawn Reform in the News
Then syndicated columnist Marty Ross – a terrific garden writer – interviewed me and others and covered the pro’s and cons of lawn and going lawnless very well here on the Denver Post and in the many other papers that publish her column.  We thank her for carrying the word.